Chapter 353: Encounter
The Last Supper.
"Hold on a second."
"Ah! Oppa, you're splashing water!"
I hurriedly put down the plate and walked towards the television.
The news was still playing on the TV.
<This Last Supper is scheduled to begin shortly, and it is expected to draw significant attention once again. I'm already looking forward to it.>
<That's right. I heard all the slots for every session have already been fully booked. Everyone is waiting to see what kind of pleasure it will bring.>
"..."
"...Is this it?"
"Yes, this seems to be it."
Right now?
The moment I thought that,
music began to flow from the television.
A solemn classical piece, and the voices of people singing along to it.
A slight headache came on, and I quickly turned off the TV.
"Are you okay?"
"The moment the song started, Mr. Jae-heon turned it off..."
"I'm fine for now, too."
"Ms. A-rin."
At my words, Song A-rin closed her eyes and placed her hands on the heads of Yu Daon and Jang Chae-yeon.
"They're fine."
"And you're sure you're fine, too?"
"I've been doing this kind of thing and have been on the receiving end of it for a while now, so of course I am."
Song A-rin looked at me with an expression that said 'what a strange question.'
"And even if I were affected, it probably wouldn't be a big deal."
"Not a big deal?"
"Yep. Well... It'd probably just be an intense desire to see that play, or something like that?"
Like with the Red Lady.
"Anyway... It's a good thing we all ended up gathered at my house by chance."
Otherwise, it would have taken a lifetime just to get everyone together again.
Still, it's a bit unfair.
"They could at least do some promotion."
"For what?"
"They never once mentioned they were putting on a performance until now."
"Expecting marketing or viral buzz from a containment object is even stranger, don't you think?"
"That's a fair point."
Well, yeah. Even if I were the troupe, I'd rather just release one containment object and brainwash people than walk around holding a sign saying 'We're performing.'
"Why are you looking at me?"
"I was just thinking that Ms. A-rin is truly a talent suited for the troupe—Agh! Headache! Headache!"
Song A-rin, who had been glaring and tormenting my head, sighed and continued.
"Anyway. We need to prepare."
"That's right. ...I'll contact the Branch Chief for now."
"That won't be necessary. Now that this news has broken, all Management Bureau personnel who are aware of this incident will have already gone into emergency mode."
Song A-rin muttered while looking out the window.
"We just have to do what we can."
"What we can do?"
Yu Daon looked at Song A-rin curiously, and I answered instead of her.
"Mental preparation and physical preparation, I suppose."
I closed the window and drew the curtains.
Then I put on some calm jazz music using the audio player in my house.
Soon after, only jazz music was flowing through my home.
"We don't know when or where the brainwashing will occur, so we're blocking our ears for now. Everyone, please refrain from using video sites today."
As I said that, I looked at Park Ye-eun.
Park Ye-eun was making a face as if her world had collapsed.
"...I have a condition where I can't sleep without watching a video before bed..."
"If you stay up for about two nights, that'll be cured, so just stay put."
You don't get sleepy if you don't do anything?
If you pull an all-nighter for about two to four days, you can fall asleep the moment your head touches anything.
Speaking from experience.
What else was there?
"Since this is a Management Bureau apartment, there should be an emergency passage like the one we used back then..."
"Ah, you mean that story... from when it was raining heavily, right?"
"Yes."
There must be some way to escape.
I also sent a text to the Branch Chief.
<Branch Chief. You've probably seen it, but Act 3 has begun. If there's anything I should be cautious about or anything you need to tell me, please let me know.>
Send complete.
When the time comes, he'll reply or give us tasks to do.
If not, we'll just have to find out on our own.
"Right. So, our goal this time is to stop Act 3."
As I said that and looked at the others, they also nodded in agreement.
"As for the method... we'll have to figure that out from now on."
"You'll figure it out as you go. You always have."
"That kind of trust is more burdensome than you think, Ms. Chae-yeon."
"If you fail, I'll die with you."
"You're planning to kill me with the burden alone, aren't you?"
At my muttering, Jang Chae-yeon gave a small laugh.
"Mr. Jae-heon will do well."
Yu Daon also laughed and tugged on my sleeve before letting go.
"And if anything happens, I'll be right here to help!"
"Stop being so pathetic."
Finally, Song A-rin let out a deep sigh and looked at us.
"Times like these are when we really need to prepare."
"That's right."
"Yeah. Stuff like equipment—"
"Let's get some proper rest."
"What?"
Hearing my words, Song A-rin looked at me with an incredulous expression, and I just shrugged my shoulders while looking back at her.
"We won't know anything until we face it anyway. And my house doesn't have things like bombs or guns."
To be precise, there's only one pistol that I can use.
"..."
After hearing my words, Song A-rin made a complicated expression and then nodded.
"Okay, what she said isn't wrong. So... let's rest appropriately and then go."
"That's a good idea."
I nodded at her words, and as if we had all made a promise, we sprawled out on the sofa.
"Really, what's the harm in giving us some time to rest?"
Hearing my sigh, the others also seemed to agree and started adding their own comments.
"It feels like there are a lot of incidents. It feels busier than when I was in the Isolation Team."
"I thought you were possessed by something at first, you know?"
"I just hope Mr. Jae-heon isn't having too hard a time..."
How can everyone's reactions be so different?
"But aren't you glad we're making a lot of money?"
And then Park Ye-eun, who was watching us, said something with absolutely zero tact.
We all turned our heads and stared intently at Park Ye-eun. Under our collective gaze, she averted her eyes and muttered.
"Sorry."
"Now that you know, behave."
"Yes..."
Even if you're a minor, there are things you should and shouldn't say.
Once things settle down a bit more and I feel safer, after experiencing just a few more incidents, I will definitely retire, become a building owner, and never work again.
Now that I think about it.
"Does everyone have something they want to do after retiring?"
"..."
"..."
"..."
Why is everyone silent?
When I raised my head and looked at the others, they were all looking at me with bewildered expressions.
What. What's the problem now?
"Y-you're going to retire?"
"...Retire...?"
"Could you phrase that differently...?"
The three of them looked at me, stammering as if they were flustered.
"No. Not right now."
It's a situation where I can't, even if I wanted to.
"Ah..."
"Yeah..."
"Then watch your wording."
These people seem like the type to try and stop a colleague from resigning rather than support them.
"...I had something I wanted to do."
Finally, Jang Chae-yeon closed her eyes, thought for a moment, and spoke.
"What is it?"
"Flower shop owner."
Given Jang Chae-yeon's appearance, she probably has a talent that would make even people who didn't want to buy flowers suddenly want to.
"As for me... well. Cafe owner?"
"Not a bum?"
"What do you take me for?"
Hearing my words, Song A-rin looked at me with an offended expression.
Well, you only ever try to get coffee from me and never help with housework, so what was I supposed to think?
Lastly.
"...Umm..."
Under our collective gaze, Yu Daon smiled awkwardly.
"Honestly, I'm not sure."
"..."
That figures.
She probably never even had the leisure to have a dream.
"So I want to learn from Mr. Jae-heon!"
"Me?"
"Yes!"
Yu Daon met my eyes with a bright smile.
"Please teach me a lot, Mr. Jae-heon!"
"...I don't have any grand dreams either."
"What is it?"
"...Building owner?"
"Building owner..."
Yu Daon closed her eyes and pondered upon hearing my words, then.
"Then I'll be the building owner next to Mr. Jae-heon!"
"Are you trying to be a competitor?"
"No! A colleague!"
She said it so brightly that I couldn't even think of a joke to make.
"If the opportunity arises."
And all I could do in response was shrug my shoulders and smile back.
"As for me—"
"You need to work more. Where does a minor get off talking about retirement already?"
"You're such an old man. I want to hit you."
My teasing of Park Ye-eun was short-lived; when she let out a long yawn, I unconsciously checked the time.
It's already this late.
"Should we all sleep?"
"How are we using the rooms?"
"I'll take the sofa. The rest of you can figure it out amongst yourselves."
Good thing I bought extra spare beds after the last incident, just in case.
Saying that, I went to the sofa first and lay down.
I should wait until the others have washed up first.
Thinking that, I lay down on the sofa.
"Then Ms. A-rin, you go first..."
"The white-haired one told you to go first..."
"Okay. I'll..."
"Uh, I..."
Listening to the four of them chattering, I closed my eyes for a moment.
It'll probably take a while, so it should be fine if I doze off.
And so I closed my eyes.
"..."
How much time had passed?
When I opened my eyes, the blanket that had been covering me fell off, and the dark interior of the house greeted me.
What? Did I fall asleep without realizing it?
The jazz music was still playing quietly, and at the same time, a sound was also coming from outside.
This feels bad.
Quietly, I sat up and headed towards the room where the others were sleeping.
Yu Daon, Song A-rin, Jang Chae-yeon, and Park Ye-eun were all sleeping together on the same bed.
Fortunately, no one had disappeared or anything.
"..."
I quietly pulled back the curtain facing outside.
There was no unfortunate sight of anyone outside or floating in the water.
I just woke up from sleep. Then I should hurry up and—
"Don't fall asleep."
And then, a familiar voice rang in my ear.
"..."
I turned my head and looked behind me.
Hair of a deep blue that shone even in the darkness, and eyes that looked much more thoughtful than her age suggested.
"..."
It was my childhood friend.
"You know what it means that I've appeared here, right?"
She looked at me and spoke in a calm voice.
"...Yeah."
It means some incident has occurred.
"What is it?"
"It's—"
"...Who are you?"
And then, a familiar voice was heard.
In the dark living room, Yu Daon was looking at us.